


Listening

by The_Dancing_Walrus



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Episode: s08e04 Listen, Gen, Monster of the Week, Spoilers, is not so bad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-14
Updated: 2014-09-14
Packaged: 2018-02-17 09:02:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2304131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Dancing_Walrus/pseuds/The_Dancing_Walrus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She loves the things on top of the bed </p>
<p>Life from the perspective of the monster under Rupert Pink's bed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Listening

She loves the things on top of the bed and after life-times of listening she understands them more than a little.

 

They taught her words, the kind that vibrate the air and the kind that mark surfaces. They taught her accidentally, when they thought they were alone. Sometimes when she is alone she takes the words-on-surfaces from the shelves and turns the thin surfaces carefully with digits that are too thick for the task.

 

She likes the one with pictures of rabbits.

 

The things on top of the bed are lovely. They make big, dry places with lots of shadows that are perfect for living in and sleeping in and laying eggs in. They are fussy about their food and so leave a lot of things for her to eat. Some of them are normal things, like the dead moths and mice, but some of them are foods that only the things on top of the beds produce, like warm coffee and salty chips and cheeses. The things on top of the bed always make too much food, they always leave tasty things behind for her and she appreciates that.

 

It’s part of why she lies under their beds guarding them.

 

And she does guard them. She doesn’t attack when threats show themselves of course, she can’t, she was made to hide. But she warns them, she makes noises-

 

When there are predators in their territory, creatures that could hurt the small-ones she groans like the old pipes to frighten them off. When there are others, ones that are not from the territory and should not be there, she creaks like the boards, moans and howls and wakes the house.

 

She keeps them safe.

 

They have taught her so many things. They have shown a creature that is born to be unnoticed how lovely, how comforting, being part of a group can be.

 

They have taught her that she is lonely.

 

She lies under their beds for the shift and creak of the mattress above. For the weight of a creature, happy and content and safe because of her. She makes soothing little knocking sounds, just for them and rearranges the toy soldiers at the bottom of the bed so that the toys will guard them both.


End file.
